This morning at 11 a.m. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that Trump and his administration has decided to end DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). This means that the Department of Homeland Security will stop accepting new DACA applications (i.e., from people who don’t already have DACA). People who already have DACA and whose work permits expire between now and March 5, 2018, will be able to apply for a two-year renewal if they apply by October 5, 2017.
Following the announcement from Jeff Sessions came DC Mayor Muriel Bowser’s statement “[calling] on Congress to quickly pass the Dream Act so that DREAMers across our country can continue to build a safer, stronger, and more prosperous country for all. As we await guidance on what today’s announcement really means, Washington, DC will continue to stand with our nearly 800 DREAMers and the thousands of immigrants who live in the District. We are proud of our DREAMers and our support will be unwavering.”
While Mayor Bowser says she stands unequivocally with “DREAMers”, in the same breath she is complicit for not holding Trump accountable for terminating DACA. At the same time that Mayor Bowser says she is “standing with ‘DREAMers,” the District continues to tolerate dangerous loopholes in policies that have led to our immigrant residents being deported, police violence on Black and Brown communities, displacement of long-term D.C. residents, and an education system that is failing our youth of color. In this moment, words are not enough. We need a real #SanctuaryDC that keeps all DC Residents safe, and we will hold all politicians accountable for their actions or the lack thereof.
This summer, we trained 15 mostly undocumented immigrant youth to be community organizers and protect themselves, their peers & their families. As a result of holding local politicians accountable, funding for these youth participants' stipends has been in jeopardy. Please support them by clicking here to donate today!
To my undocumented family, to other DACA recipients, and to any community under attack by this White supremacist administration, we have been here before and we will continue to protect our community and resist. Trump and politicians on both sides are deflecting the responsibility onto congress to create a legislative solution, but we know that protecting only some immigrant youth is not enough. This moment is meant to divide immigrant communities into who is “deserving and undeserving,” it is meant to put the blame on parents of undocumented youth, it is meant to uphold the criminalization of Black and Brown immigrants who are disproportionately targeted by police, I.C.E. and the criminal justice system. This moment is meant to break us, but we are resilient people and we will fight for a liberation that goes beyond documentation or any legislation.
With love and peace,
Ray Jose
Youth Justice Organizer
MLOV
Below are some resources for more current information on DACA:
(National Day Laborers Organizing Network) Know Your Rights
(United States Citizenship and Immigration Services)List of Countries currently Designated for TPS
How to Protect Yourself and Your Family as DACA Ends
(National Immigration Law Center and United We Dream) 5 things to know about DACA
(Immigrant Legal Resource Center) What do I need to Know About the End of DACA